RELEASE: GRACE/ECPCA & CalWIC Association Joint Statement on Opposing SNAP Restrictions and Supporting Fully Funding WIC

PASADENA, CALIF., UNITED STATES, February 28, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Statement attributable to Karen Farley, Executive Director of the California WIC Association, and Shimica Gaskins, President and CEO of GRACE/End Child Poverty California, regarding the Fiscal Year 2024 bill for Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration:

We urge Congress to both fully fund the Special Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), and reject any efforts promoting a policy of limiting food choice in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

SNAP is the country’s most important anti-hunger program and the nutritional benefits of this program have been well documented. It has also been well documented that the best way to improve the nutrition of low-income households is to reduce stigma in the current program and to increase the benefits provided in the program. The proposal to pilot restricting food purchases endeavors to do neither.

WIC served nearly a million Californians in 2023, and more than half (54%) of all infants born in California were certified by WIC in 2018. Full funding for WIC is urgently needed to ensure continuity of the nutrition, breastfeeding, and other critical supports that pregnant and parenting adults, and babies, rely upon every day.

Funding for WIC is in no way related to funding for SNAP, and the programs should not be pitted against one another.

Policymakers have a responsibility to keep America’s children fed and ensure their long-term health and success. WIC must be fully funded, and SNAP recipients must be allowed to continue make their food purchasing decisions based on the needs of their family.

Linda Swank
GRACE & End Child Poverty CA
+1 626-356-4206
email us here
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RELEASE: GRACE/ECPCA & CalWIC Association Joint Statement on Opposing SNAP Restrictions and Supporting Fully Funding WIC

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Linda Swank
GRACE & End Child Poverty CA
+1 626-356-4206

email us here

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GRACE
85 S. Grand Ave
Pasadena, California, 91105
United States
+1 626-356-4200
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About

GRACE (Gather, Respect, Advocate, Change, Engage) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable organization working to make a positive difference in the lives of low-income families and their children. GRACE was founded by the Daughters of Charity, who have been engaged in anti-poverty work in California since 1852. GRACE dares to imagine a liberated future, free from systemic racism and poverty, in which all children experience a childhood of abundance, love, dignity, and opportunities to thrive. To achieve this vision, GRACE is building a joyful movement by centering communities, building authentic partnerships, and advancing public investments that create transformative intergenerational change. End Child Poverty California (ECPCA) is a campaign jointly sponsored by GRACE End Child Poverty Institute and GRACE to support public policy, partnerships, and community efforts to dramatically reduce child poverty in California. GRACE End Child Poverty Institute, a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization, was founded to further GRACE’s mission, with the realization that political advocacy and government action are crucial for pushing for real change.